Using Linux in a Training Environment

One company's experience using Linux as the operating system of choice for their training classes.

The Price of Tools and Add on Packages

As mentioned earlier, most, if not all, Linux distributions
ship with a multitude of packages which would cost you extra from
some commercial vendors. A third party Motif derivative for Linux
runs far less than the asking price from OSF. In fact, one of the
reasons that I became involved with Linux was the steep-pricing
structure issued by SCO. I am a former employee of a SCO VAR,
reseller and software development house. I decided that I would
purchase SCO for myself and run it at home on one of my spare
machines. I laid out $1,500 just for the base operating system,
only to discover that to add TCP/IP and the Developer Kit another
$1,500 would be in order—not for me.

Lack of Technical Support

This is truly the most pressing battle you may need to fight.
Since there is no central technical support group for Linux,
internal staff are responsible for all maintenance and support of
the system. If you don't have a true Linux fanatic around or
someone, who plans on becoming one in a hurry, you might be better
off with a commercial solution. We have two Linux mongers on our
instructor staff, with another dozen or so in our local consultant
base—works out rather nicely for us.

Lack of Commercial Solutions

Up until now, most commercial software developers and vendors
shied away from marketing Linux native tools. However, a new trend
is coming into play. Thanks to some key players in the industry
(Caldera, WordPerfect, etc.), more and more tools are becoming
available for Linux proper. I expect this trend to continue, as
more and more Linux machines appear in the workplace. In addition
to the Linux native packages which are becoming available, another
option exists. Under the freely available iBCS2 emulator, binaries
for other iBCS-supported platforms can be utilized under Linux. In
fact, we have had great success running the SCO versions of many
packages under Linux, including WordPerfect/X and Oracle 7. While a
further discussion of iBCS2 is an entire series of articles in
itself, it is something you may wish to explore further at least as
an interim solution.

Implementing a Linux Solution

In order to assist others in putting together a Linux
solution, I have put together a list of tips and pointers to give
you a good starting point. Some of these areas are discussed
further in the wonderful white paper by Caldera, Inc., “Using
Linux in a Commercial Setting.” The primary focus of your effort
is probably to convince management that a freely available OS is a
viable solution. This is rarely an easy task by any stretch of the
imagination. If you have strings in the company, plan on pulling
them.

Getting a Game Plan Together

Before presenting your case to management, be sure to have a
game plan in order. Don't jump up and shout “Let's run Linux.” at
the first project meeting. Corporate ties with commercial solution
providers often run deep, so be careful. Put together a detailed
implementation plan, complete with a cost savings analysis and time
schedule. There are a number of things you can do to help yourself
in this regard.

Actively research the necessary areas. Provide solid numbers
for commercial solutions. Be sure that you have accommodated all
aspects of the project within your proposal. Make sure that all
issues of connectivity and software facilitation have been
addressed. Think of it as a legal battle—leave no loopholes in
your argument.

Obtain and maintain high-level contacts in the industry. Meet
with other folks who have successfully implemented a Linux
solution. They may be able to provide additional insight into your
argument. Planning on running the latest and greatest version of
“product X” under Linux? Chances are, someone else has already
driven the Linux wagon down that road—investigate.

Establish a good flow of incoming information. Actively
participate in the various Linux newsgroups. They are a wonderful
resource for obtaining contacts and production information.
Subscribe to Linux Journal. Helpful articles
and vendor information are in abundance with each issue.

Hardware integration—make sure that your proposed hardware
will function once its all together on-line. If you can't do it
yourself beforehand, try to find someone who has. The worst thing
in the world is to win the battle with management and run into
hardware issues which require additional purchases to patch a
problem that you didn't foresee.

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